Parallel Workshops
The reintegration of former inmates in Romania faces significant challenges due to fragmented institutional responsibilities. Upon release, individuals typically receive minimal support – just a small payout, travel papers, and directions to the probation office, which only assists those under supervision. Essential needs such as housing, employment, healthcare, and social benefits are managed by separate agencies, each with distinct mandates and eligibility criteria, making it difficult for those leaving prison to access comprehensive support.
To address this gap, the Romanian National Penitentiary Administration, with backing from the Council of Europe Development Bank, initiated a feasibility study for a dedicated reintegration centre in Timișoara. The study’s collaborative approach involved multiple stakeholders, including penitentiary administrators, prison management, independent consultants, agency staff, civil society groups, and individuals with incarceration experience. Through a pre-release survey, agency mapping, and benchmarking against eleven reintegration organisations across Europe, the research found that the core issue is not resource scarcity but coordination failure, as no single institution is tasked with managing cases transversally.
Benchmarking suggests that a lightweight platform model—a small hub coordinating agency and civil society input, supplemented by a few transition houses for high-needs cases—is more effective than large residential facilities. The study continues to explore these challenges. The presentation will develop what the study has learned at the date of the conference: the interim findings, the main topics of discussion that have surfaced, the factors that appear to matter, and the lessons of running a collaborative feasibility process in a multi-stakeholders system.
Prof. Dr. Ioan Durnescu is a professor at the University of Bucharest's Faculty of Sociology and Social Work, where he engages in the teaching and research of probation, prison reform, and deradicalization. His academic interests are deeply rooted in the comparative study of probation systems, the reintegration of formerly incarcerated individuals, and the development of effective interventions with justice-involved persons.
He published extensively on core correctional skills (corecorrectional.eu) and conducted training sessions on this topic across various countries, including Slovenia, Jordan, Moldova, Spain, Croatia, Armenia and Kosovo. These sessions have not only allowed him to impart his knowledge but also to learn from the unique challenges and solutions found in different cultural contexts.
In his role as one of the editors for the European Journal of Probation, Prof. Dr. Durnescu contributes to the critical examination and dissemination of research that informs best practices in probation. He also pioneered the creation of ReHub, an innovative app designed to translate scientific research into practical tools for those working in prisons and probation services. He recently co-edited important handbooks such as The Routledge Handbook on Global Community Corrections and The Routledge Handbook of European Penology.
Ioan Durnescu is Team Leader of the Timisoara reintegration Centre feasibility study.
